Canada’s manufacturing sector continued to bear the brunt of the econ­omy’s job losses last month as the automotive industry scaled back production in response to feeble consumer demand.

In manufacturing, 101,000 net positions evaporated in January, the largest monthly decline on record for the sector, according to Statistics Canada. About 36,000 of those positions were in Ontario, where layoff announcements started to take effect.

Overall, 129,000 positions were lost in January, more than any monthly decline in the previous two recessions.

The heavy manufacturing job losses drove employment in Ontario down by 71,000 positions, pushing the province’s unemployment rate up 0.8 of a percentage point to eight per cent, the highest level since November 1997.